https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzp3Lh9zCNU&amp;feature=youtu.beKul Chandra Gautam’s life is an inspirational story of how a school boy in one of the poorest and remotest districts in Nepal went on to become the seniormost Nepali in the United Nations. He achieved this by a lot of hard work, extraordinary perseverance, and never losing sight of his duty to help those in underserved parts of the world, like where he grew up as a boy.Gautam is a soft-spoken, but hardcore believer in democracy, open society, non-violence and has a strong commitment to social justice. While at UNICEF, he was a dynamo for reform, believing that the UN itself had to change if it wanted to change the world. After devoting his entire career for the welfare of children worldwide, he returned to Nepal in 2008 to contribute to his motherland.The manuscript of his memoir was cut in two by his publisher, nepa-laya. The first part came out as <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Lost-in-transition-kul-chandra-gautam-review,2734" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lost in Transition: Rebuilding Nepal from the Maoist Mayhem and the Mega Earthquake</a> in 2015. Rubeena Mahato, who reviewed the book for this paper, wrote then: ‘In a brilliant counter-narrative, Gautam destroys the dominant discourse that eulogises the Maoist war as a natural and inevitable uprising of the oppressed, arguing instead that the war cut short Nepal’s march towards democracy and development and pushed us into protracted transition.’A prequel to that book is being launched next week: Global Citizen from Gulmi: My Journey from the Hills of Nepal to the Halls of the United Nations. This is Gautam’s real memoir that narrates his personal antecedents and experiences as a world citizen which lend both books credibility, and makes him a bête noire of the Stalinist votaries of violence in our midst.We first catch a glimpse of Kunjarmani Gautam as a young boy, as his grandfather taught him the Devnagari alphabet in Gulmi by writing them down on the ground with a stick. He later changed his name to Kul Chandra Gautam, a favourite poet. The young boy impresses Peace Corps volunteers in Tansen with his self-taught English and prowess at Scrabble. <img width="400" height="645" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110714114/636902d19c7e80680e037c87jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Gautam then gets a full scholarship to Dartmouth College in the US, but has his first run-in with bureaucracy where ‘people are made to serve the rules rather than rules made to serve the people’. This is 1966, and his passport application goes up the Panchayat government ladder all the way to King Mahendra, only to be rejected.He finally gets to Dartmouth the next year, overcomes culture shock, excels in class, joins anti-Vietnam war protests on campus, and goes on for graduate studies at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton where he admits he was a ‘left-leaning student’. Gautam wants to return to Nepal, but lands a job with UNICEF in Cambodia, beginning a career spanning 35 years. He saw Khmer Rouge atrocities up close, and had to be evacuated from Phnom Penh in a Royal Air Force Hercules to Fort Butterworth as the country descended into the Killing Fields.Many years later when he hears Maoist leader Baburam Bhattarai (who reminds him of Khieu Samphan) call the Khmer Rouge genocide a ‘Western exaggeration’ he is convinced revolutionaries seldom learn from history. Gautam then works in Laos and Indonesia and finally is sent to Haiti by his UNICEF mentor, James P Grant. Haiti is a lesson in how ruthless dictators like Baby Doc Duvalier can consign their nations to perpetual poverty.He is posted in Latin America at a time of Liberation Theologists, the Shining Path and Paolo Freire’s theory of conscientização in Brazil. Gautam unrolls Pele as a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/back-to-the-nipple-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UNICEF breastfeeding</a> ambassador, getting his mother to say: “Of course he is the world’s best football player, I breastfed him.”Then it is post-Soviet Europe where countries are collapsing into chaos. Gautam helps coordinate relief for Sarajevo, and gets to sleep in Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha’s bed in Tirana. <figure><img width="1400" height="778" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110714114/636902d39c7e80680e037c88jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Grant then posts Gautam to India, where the Nepali overcomes the arrogance of Indian babudom to help locate UNICEF’s regional South Asia office in Kathmandu. He was a ‘Sherpa’ for the historic World Summit for Children of 1990 in New York, negotiating minefields of protocol, egos and geopolitics to get member states to sign the National Plans of Action, which became the model for the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/International/MDG,397" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MDGs</a> and the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/ending-child-marriage-in-Nepal,3864" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SDGs</a> that followed.He has great admiration for Vaclav Havel, and notes that the Czech President died on the same day as Kim Jong-Il in 2011, and that Nepal’s Communists trooped off to the DPRK embassy in Kathmandu to sign the condolence book. He is ashamed not one Nepali leader paid any tribute to Havel.Gautam’s other hero is Nelson Mandela, who impressed him in Pretoria with his disregard for pomp and protocol. Unlike some ‘democratic’ Nepali leaders, Madiba never had to show how important he was by displaying trappings of power.Years later, Gautam sees lessons for Nepal in Mandela’s handling of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/truth-about-truth-commission,3565" target="_blank" rel="noopener">truth and reconciliation</a> and the dangers of ethnic Bantustans.Parts of the book about Gautam’s return to Nepal after retirement are extracted from Lost in Transition, where he recounts the efforts to start peace negotiations with UN HQ, Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, and directly with King Gyanendra and Maoist leaders.He understands the anger driving the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/the-spark-that-lit-the-Maoist-revolution,2870" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Maoist revolution</a>, but never glamourises it like many Nepali and international pseudo-revolutionaries. He calls it like it is: a needless carnage that derailed Nepal’s march towards democracy and development.He is scathing about the organisation he once worked for, the United Nations, and the expats in rose-tinted glasses who led its post-conflict peace mission in Nepal. The past few years have proven Kul Chandra Gautam right: the insurgency was not a revolution but a blatant attempt at state capture by misguided figures espousing an obsolete ideology.Indeed, today’s united Communists have turned out to be worse than the rulers they replaced. The real victims of that ruinous war were the very people who were supposed to be liberated.Because of his own life struggle and wisdom, every word in Kul Gautam’s book rings true, carrying the immense power of his conviction.Also Read: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/upendra-devkotas-lives/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Upendra Devkota's lives</a>, Kunda Dixit<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17381#.W2L_WdUzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jhamak Speaks</a>, Supriya Sharma<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18559#.W2L_VdUzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ani's story</a>The mistake in Gautam's years of service and his protest of anti-Vietnam war have been corrected. -Ed <h2>Book excerpt</h2> <img width="612" height="661" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110714114/636902d69c7e80680e037c89jpeg.jpg" alt="">As I witnessed the rise of identity politics in Nepal and around the world, it became clear to me that while the human quest for prosperity is eternal and universal, people’s identity changes over time, and depends often on the eyes of the beholder. Taking my own case, I noted how some militant advocates of identity politics in Nepal and some foreign anthropologists and even diplomats tended to place me in a conventional pigeonhole as a “Pahade, Male, Hindu, Bahun from western Nepal.”According to their worldview, people like me would be congenitally doomed to ... defend only the interests of his or her identity groups, and incapable of defending the interests of women, Dalits, Madhesis, Janajatis and other deprived communities. For me personally, the only identity that matters, and that I am proud of, are that I am: a human being, a Nepali and a citizen of the world. All other identities are either accidentally inherited or given to me by others. They may be important as markers of where I am from but of no consequence in terms of the values and principles that I subscribe to.Global Citizen from Gulmi, page 46-47

Kunda Dixit

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Kul Chandra Gautam's long journey home

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111156/6368e44c9c7e80680e0333d0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="659"/>Environmental pollution is not Nepal’s only problem. Citizens around the globe share social, economic and developmental problems. If our situation is the same, our destiny is also the same. So, we have no choice but to unite and solve our problems together. We have to think beyond our surroundings and become global citizens.”These words are not from an environmentalist or a politician, but from Ankit Sangroula, a Grade 8 student at Mount View School in Bhaktapur. Speaking at Hotel Yak &amp; Yeti, his speech left the room full of adults awestruck.Sangroula is one of the students mentored by <a href="https://schoolsonline.britishcouncil.org/about-programmes/connecting-classrooms">Connecting Classrooms</a>, a joint initiative between the British Council and the UK’s Department for International Development (DfID). The program is designed to cultivate knowledge, skills and values in young people so they can live and work in a globalised economy. Working off the beaten track of academic system, the initiative connects students across the world to foster national and international friendship.It also inspires young people to make positive contributions locally and globally. For example, in Baijanathpur, Morang, eight toilets were built by students from Makalu School without any support from donors or local banks. They gave an alternative to villagers who previously used riverbanks as a bathroom where they were sometimes bitten by snakes or chased by the police, but now they have an alternative. The local village council and the rest of the villagers followed their steps by constructing more toilets.The Open Defecation Eradication Project was one of the Council’s successful Social Action Projects conducted in Nepal’s schools. The projects are student-led initiatives focused on tackling community issues and inspiring leadership and team spirit in students. The Social Action Project has been collaborating with 100 schools from 24 districts, involving 16,200 students and reaching out to around 17,000 community members to solve social problems.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111156/6368e44e9c7e80680e0333d1jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="960"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The project results have left many impressed. “When these little students came to us to talk about building toilets, we were so proud of them. All of us here are really thankful for this initiative,” says Jhameli Rishidev of Baijanathpur.In total, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BritishCouncilNepal/">British Council</a> has reached out to more than 250 schools in Nepal through International School Award (ISA), integrated with a curriculum that focuses on digital literacy, critical thinking and problem solving, creativity and imagination, student leadership, collaboration and communication and citizenship.The event where Sangroula gave a confident speech was ISA, one of the key programs of the British Council under Connecting Classrooms that recognises schools showing strong commitment to enriching students’ lives and inspiring interest in international cultures and global issues.“Through ISA, I have learnt to use the knowledge we get from books to solve problems around us. Before, we just read books and listened to our teachers. But now we learn by doing,” says Sangroula.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111156/6368e4519c7e80680e0333d2jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="665"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Nineteen other schools were awarded and four schools were re-accredited for the year 2017/18 during the event, out of 42 schools from 14 districts. The award, into its 6th edition, is endorsed by the Department of Education.Connecting Classrooms has reached out to students, teachers and school leaders in over 30 countries to improve teaching and learning experience through school partnerships and policy dialogues, recognising and awarding progressive schools and encouraging students to lead initiatives. It also provides core skill training to school leaders and teachers on how to make the profession more effective and impactful.Dhani Ram Sharma, a teacher from Nepal Rastriya Chandraganga Secondary School in Surkhet says, "ISA brought dynamic changes in our teaching staff as well as students. Students got golden opportunity to interact with international students through Skype and email. We, teachers learnt about ICT and brought changes in our traditional/ lecture teaching approach, developing innovative techniques."<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111156/6368e4549c7e80680e0333d3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107111156/6368e4579c7e80680e0333d4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="417"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Schools receiving International School Award 2017/18<table width="518"><tbody><tr><td width="55">1</td><td width="349">Nepal Rastriya Chandra Ganga school</td><td width="113">Surkhet</td></tr><tr><td width="55">2</td><td width="349">Orchid School</td><td width="113">Chitwan</td></tr><tr><td width="55">3</td><td width="349">Celebration Co-ed School</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr><tr><td width="55">4</td><td width="349">Vidya Sagar English Secondary school</td><td width="113">Kavre</td></tr><tr><td width="55">5</td><td width="349">Nabin Audhyogic Kadak Bahadur Rita School</td><td width="113">Rupandehi</td></tr><tr><td width="55">6</td><td width="349">Sanskriti International School</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr><tr><td width="55">7</td><td width="349">Him Rashmi Secondary School</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr><tr><td width="55">8</td><td width="349">Pragyan Academy</td><td width="113">Jhapa</td></tr><tr><td width="55">9</td><td width="349">KK International School</td><td width="113">Dharan</td></tr><tr><td width="55">10</td><td width="349">Mount View English Boarding School</td><td width="113">Bhaktapur</td></tr><tr><td width="55">11</td><td width="349">Traibidya Sikchhya Sadan Academy</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr><tr><td width="55">12</td><td width="349">Sudesha High School</td><td width="113">Lalitpur</td></tr><tr><td width="55">13</td><td width="349">Eureka School</td><td width="113">Dharan</td></tr><tr><td width="55">14</td><td width="349">Jhapa Model School</td><td width="113">Jhapa</td></tr><tr><td width="55">15</td><td width="349">Babylon School</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr><tr><td width="55">16</td><td width="349">Shreejana Higher Secondary Boarding School</td><td width="113">Pokhara</td></tr><tr><td width="55">17</td><td width="349">Ambika secondary school</td><td width="113">Pokhara</td></tr><tr><td width="55">18</td><td width="349">Gorkha Intl Public School</td><td width="113">Dang</td></tr><tr><td width="55">19</td><td width="349">Eurokids school Chhauni</td><td width="113">Kathmandu</td></tr></tbody></table>

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Young change makers

Who is accountable for teacher-student relationships?

Of the nearly 19 million eligible voters in next week’s election in Nepal, an estimated 5 million are abroad and cannot cast their ballots. Many others within Nepal must travel to their home districts, and might decide not to because of the cost.
Flights into Kathmandu these days are full of global Nepalis returning just to vote, but almost as many are leaving for overseas jobs. Most of those coming or going are in the 20-40 age group, and a majority want Nepal to see a change in leadership.
Bangladesh held an election this month in which citizens overseas could vote by mail.&nbsp;
“Bangladesh made maximum use of technology not just for campaigning but also for polling itself. We could have also managed this, so people within Nepal did not have to travel to their home districts to vote,” says Mohna Ansari, former head of Nepal’s National Human Rights Commission who was an election observer in Bangladesh.
A 3-day holiday has been declared so people can travel to their home constituencies to cast ballots. Even if there was not enough time to manage ballots for overseas Nepalis, it could have been done for Nepalis within Nepal.
Former Chief Election Commissioner Bhojraj Pokharel reckons that physical voting in countries with a large Nepali diaspora would have been a logistical nightmare, but in the PR system, using electronic voting machines or paper ballot could have been piloted in some places. It is not possible to manage the entire voting process until we introduce the internet voting system.
“First of all, there needs to be political will to bring the policy and be ready to undertake that level of investment and it is not a one-time cost,” Pokharel says. “A government formed by the GenZ could have atr least issed an ordinance ensuring this right, piloted out-of-country voting where possible, which could have built pressure for the future Parliament and the government. It would have given people hope. It is a lost opportunity.”
All major political parties called for voting rights for global Nepalis in their manifestos, but these very leaders blocked legislation allowing it despite a 2017 Supreme Court ruling out of fear that it would be anti-incumbent.&nbsp;
<h2>Why so late?</h2>
Bangladesh delivered election results in just one day, but the final results of Nepal's last local polls in 2022 including that of Kathmandu constituencies took nearly a month.
Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari said this week that the results of the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) ballot counting would “likely” be published within 24 hours of the poll closing at 5PM on 5 March. But many are skeptical.
“I wonder if we lack the capacity or know-how to announce results as quickly as possible,” says Mohna Ansari.
Former Chief Election Commissioner Pokharel says manual ballot paper counting in Nepal is inherently slow because of the large numner of political parties and/or candidates on the ballot, the counting mechanism, the political behaviour of the candidates/parties and some managerial issues during counting.
“Our present policy is to count all the ballot papers at the returning officers' officies, located at the district headquarters. It requires collecting ballot boxes safetly first. This takes time, and there have been cases of ballot boxes being damaged or stolen during transport. In a few highly difficult, geographically remote polling centres, we use a helicopter or transport. But sometimes, accommodating the party and candidates' representatives remains challenging,” explains Pokharel. A solution could be counting ballots at the very booths where they are cast.
Another reason for the delay is simply the number of political parties, and the need for each ballot paper to be examined by booth representatives for consensus. In close races, the smallest difference can lead to tense situations, further delaying results, even though counting centres are protected by metal fencing so there is no disruption.
After this, then it is the turn of Proportional Representation (PR) ballots to be counted. Weeks pass by the time the results of candidates and parties are tallied and verified. But the most common delay is because election officers think ballot counting is a nine-to-five job.&nbsp;
“The efficiency of poll station officers is most important, and they are incentivised for this,” says Ansari, adding that counting can even start within an hour after voting closes.
In remote areas, local resources could be mobilised to make counting quicker, but there is a crisis of trust, adds Ansari.&nbsp;
That could be easily solved with electronic voting which the EC implemented in the 2008 polls but discontinued because political parties felt the machines could be hacked or manipulated.

Nepalis Select Who To Elect

On Saturday, Iran retaliated with missile strikes on Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain and Qatar, a region where there are an estimated 2 million Nepalis working to send money home. In addition, thousands of Nepalis were preparing to board flights to Kathmandu from West Asian cities this weekend to vote in the 5 March election. Many are said to be stranded at various aviation hubs. A Qatar Airways flight from Doha took off just before the air space was closed, while Air Arabia and Kuwait Airways have diverted or cancelled flights. Nepalis in the West Asian region said things were relatively calm where they were, although some heard loud explosions at about noon local time. In Dubai, some thought they were Ramadan fireworks.&nbsp; In Kuwait, nearly 2,000 Nepalis working in the US military base as security guards and cleaners were evacuated before the strikes. In Bahrain where the US Fifth Fleet naval base is located and which was hit by two Iranian missiles, workers contacted by Nepali Times said the situation was under control and the authorities had told everyone to stay indoors and not use highways. The conflict also coincided with the beginning of Nepal’s trekking and mountaineering season, and tourists were either on their way or planning to leave European and North American cities for Himalayan hikes. Most of them transit through Doha, Dubai or Kuwait and all three airports are closed. Turkish Airlines flights via Istanbul are still operating.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260228130212_ab5e132d56da1df6a3fb1b6919648f845a168ad2c51d79f7587fb85a6e913b97.png" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260228130212_ab5e132d56da1df6a3fb1b6919648f845a168ad2c51d79f7587fb85a6e913b97" data-rendition-name="original" width="1864" height="826" loading="lazy" alt="Qatar and UAE airspace closed"> <figcaption>Qatar and UAE airspace closed. Credit: Flightradar24</figcaption> </figure>  However, the main impact for the world could be a spike in the price of petroleum products if the strategic Strait of Hormuz is blocked. China relies on Iranian oil for their refineries, and Nepal could be affected indirectly if the economies of its neighbours are hit. Nepal imports all its diesel, petrol, LPG and aviation fuel from India which sources it mainly from the Gulf, and until recently from Russia. Petroleum makes up 25% of the value of all imports, and that is more than Nepal earns from all its exports. Saudi Arabia this year overtook the UAE as the main destination for Nepali workers, with the number now totalling 400,000. There are said to be as many in the UAE, and another 350,000 in Qatar. There are another 100,000 mostly women in Kuwait, and 50,000 each in Oman and Bahrain.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260228130220_d24ae633ff84f283835434becdb2f1351f84c415ce87ca34378bd4e2669661b3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260228130220_d24ae633ff84f283835434becdb2f1351f84c415ce87ca34378bd4e2669661b3" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="West Asia Iran conflict"> <figcaption>Iran retaliated with missile strikes on Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain and Qatar on Saturday.</figcaption> </figure>  Nepal receives nearly $11 billion a year in remittances from overseas Nepalis (not counting India) through official channels, although the total is said to be much more. &nbsp;This makes up more than a quarter of Nepal’s GDP equivalent — one of the highest proportions in the world. More than half of the overseas remittances to Nepal comes from its workers in the Gulf, and it is the mainstay of the country’s economy. Nepalis in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE alone send home more than $3 billion a year, much of that helping support their families back home. An average Nepali worker in the Gulf sends home nearly $2,500 a year, and this is spent mainly for household supplies, children’s education and healthcare. There are also an estimated 7,000 Nepali caregivers and healthcare workers in Israel, and most of them are women. The Nepal Embassy has asked Nepalis in Israel to take caution and move to bomb shelters.

West Asia war and Nepalis

This is the 86th episode of Diaspora Diaries, a Nepali Times series in collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working and studying abroad. <h2>Thinking about the country</h2> Pappu Mahara, Malaysia  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_b8bbe881acfbe3eda31f8127bfad743cb672f8777ee145be68b60176bfffda45.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260223120244_b8bbe881acfbe3eda31f8127bfad743cb672f8777ee145be68b60176bfffda45" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="2278" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  I came to Nepal on vacation and managed to time it around election. In Malaysia where I have been working for over two years, it is all about elections. In our rooms. Online. In fact, the discussions around elections felt more heated in Malaysia than back home in the village here in Mahottari.&nbsp; Even when you find out someone is going to Nepal, Nepalis who are unable to come home ask who we are voting for and remind us to tell everyone to vote for Balen. I gave my colleagues a thumbs up and assured them: only Balen. &nbsp;That is the message we come home with. And that is the reason I pasted Balen even in my suitcase as I came home. I wanted to show the world that those of us who are working hard overseas support him.&nbsp; In the past, my family voted for another party but they failed us. Even to get jobs we qualify for we need connections. Where are the jobs? The factories? Development?&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_5fd78fb1c7aae55b75f687d7e34d362854dc0b7167ee0755766401650fa05fb2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260223120244_5fd78fb1c7aae55b75f687d7e34d362854dc0b7167ee0755766401650fa05fb2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1002" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  Unemployment is high. Costs are rising. It is not just jobs in Nepal, even to get access to good overseas jobs, we need connections now. And money. There is corruption everywhere.&nbsp; Our expectation from the new government is to think beyond only their close networks and personal gain, to think about the country. What is the point of repeating mistakes from the past if those who are going to benefit are the sisters, nieces and nephews of those in power? It is good that some of us got to come home, even one vote can make a difference.&nbsp; Each ballot can create a mountain, that is why we have come home to vote.&nbsp; <h2>Coming home to support my son</h2> Rishiram Khanal कोही छन् विदेशमा, कोही यता शहरमा, जीवन उकास्न भोग्दै कहरै कहरमा। शून्य भयो गाउँघर, मान्छे लाखापाखा हुँदा, जुनकीरीको पिल्पिल् हरायो सुनसान डहरमा। Some are abroad, some here in the city,Enduring hardship just to lift life.Villages empty as people scatter far and wide,Fireflies don't flicker anymore over barren paths. I came home to Nawalpur from Bahrain to support my son, Manish Khanal, who is running in the election as an RSP candidate. I migrated to Bahrain 15 years ago where I work as a security guard. It was for my children’s education and future. That is the story of the majority of us, a compulsion.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_6e0cce852d3b0b1c2d3004952569386674fa5d08cbaa9d77effd1af6ad735dee.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20260223120244_6e0cce852d3b0b1c2d3004952569386674fa5d08cbaa9d77effd1af6ad735dee" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1778" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  It would have been better if we did not have to leave our families behind. But we migrate to secure a future for our children. Mine have done well for themselves, they are educated and disciplined. This motivated me to stay on overseas. And now my son’s achievement has further motivated me. From childhood, Manish was a hard-working student who did well throughout his school. He got into politics through Bibeksheel and has now made his way to RSP where he is contesting from Nawalpur. Everyone has their reason for joining politics. My son was drawn to it because the country was deteriorating and corruption is rife. Many youth are leaving. The Gen-Z revolution in which many young lives were lost made him even more committed to run for office. I come home every two years on vacation, but this time it was special when I arrived three days ago. I was overjoyed. Even on the plane, people recognised my son on videos. He is from an ordinary Nepali family, but is getting noticed globally. &nbsp;I had never imagined this reality is possible, such a life-changing opportunity has opened up for him at such a young age. He is the second youngest candidate running for office.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_b5a8fbc1a268445798a573e6f9e837a1ed620d494a2c06492a4a14d790a7a319.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20260223120244_b5a8fbc1a268445798a573e6f9e837a1ed620d494a2c06492a4a14d790a7a319" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> <figcaption>Rishiram Khanal (left) with his son Manish Khanal.</figcaption> </figure>  I want to see him run the country. I want him to ensure that the youth can get decent jobs in Nepal itself. I am encouraged by the feedback I have received from fellow workers in Bahrain. They support me and congratulate me for raising a son with such integrity. Here in Nawalpur, the environment is positive and I am also helping campaign for my son. The support for the RSP abroad is high. People are calling up family members back home to tell them to vote for घन्टी. We have long duty hours so don’t travel around much but from what I saw, there is a lot of support for the party. No matter who is running from whichever party, I hope that the priority will be Nepal’s prosperity, they should focus on building the nation. Nepalis should not have to leave in such large numbers.&nbsp; As for my son, I wish him the very best and hope he goes far. I want him win and become Nepal's son, not just mine. I want the world to know of him as an honest, selfless Nepali who will fulfil his duties for the nation earnestly.&nbsp; <h2>If not now, then when?</h2> Narendra baral, Oman  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_f8d421d93e8668b794e606198ee5b29d8e6b1af1640c91577b6f984c93d088f3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20260223120244_f8d421d93e8668b794e606198ee5b29d8e6b1af1640c91577b6f984c93d088f3" data-rendition-name="original" width="606" height="689" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  Just like elections have taken over Nepal, those of us abroad are equally excited and engaged. After the GenZ movement in particular, we Nepalis abroad have become even more involved. Friends are also keen to return to Nepal to vote. The mentality that no matter who wins it won’t matter and nothing will change has now been replaced by: if not now, when? There is a growing consensus that youth need to lead the nation. In that regard, the leadership change in the Nepali Congress (NC) has encouraged overseas Nepalis because we view Gagan Thapa, with his experience and sacrifices, as the right person to lead the nation. What he did recently to change the face of the NC has rejuvenated hope. For far too long, the musical chairs among the same old people had led to a sense of disgust with the state of the politics.&nbsp; Now, with new parties and new leadership in old parties, we feel emboldened to talk and engage positively and with hope. He has already won people’s confidence by allowing new faces to contest the elections, and even those who had started feeling skeptical or discouraged with Congress are now strongly supporting the party. I first migrated to Dubai in 2006 and returned five years later to start a poultry farm and fresh house in Nepal, but it did not go very far, so I decided to remigrate to Oman in 2016. It is a pity that overseas Nepalis could not vote in this election either. We saw Bangladeshis mail their votes just recently, while Filipino colleagues do so online.&nbsp; We even submitted a petition to the embassy on this issue, and the ambassador was positive given that there are just 25,000 Nepalis in Oman. Let’s hope the next election will be different. I am glad that this issue has been addressed in recent manifestos shared by the parties. Other than allowing diaspora voting, the government should also create a platform for those of us abroad so we can channel our investment and skills back home. We are investing in Oman and would like to do the same back home and create jobs for youth. Those of us who can manage are coming to Nepal to vote. Some of us have timed our vacations that way. Others have taken a week’s leave. <h2>Every vote counts&nbsp;</h2> Prajwal Poudel, Saudi Arabia  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260224130228_0b2e9f6cbfc40a4fbd90ee93ede9bfe66dfb7011785376e6d290ce12578f69a6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20260224130228_0b2e9f6cbfc40a4fbd90ee93ede9bfe66dfb7011785376e6d290ce12578f69a6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1170" height="878" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  I was not sure if I would come to Nepal from Saudi Arabia for this election. But as election came close I really wanted to come home, I thought every vote matters. It is a basic right of every Nepali citizen and this is the right time now in Nepal where things are building up for change.&nbsp; All five of us roommates are returning. We all came together to Saudi Arabia to work and are going back together to vote for RSP. Our contract was about to end a couple of weeks after the elections so my roommates decided to forfeit a few weeks of salary to come home to vote. My situation was a bit different because I had made up my mind to stay on. I can always migrate overseas, if I have to go again, I can arrange it but the GenZ movement is a once in a lifetime event and this positive environment for change might not come again. I have resigned from my job with the slogan: each vote counts. I also am hopeful that the same employer will bring me back if needed as I have built a good rapport with them and worked hard throughout my contract. I am supporting Ghanti this time but if they do not deliver I will again choose another party next time.&nbsp; For me it is about choosing the right leaders. Some of my colleagues are telling me I should not have made this decision to return. My father was telling me to remain overseas so I have not told him properly that I am coming home with no return plans. My mother knows the reality and seems excited and she brought my citizenship card to Jhapa.&nbsp; If things don’t pan out as I have planned and the same old faces win, I will again migrate. Perhaps that is why I am coming home to avoid that possibility. The stakes are high this time. <h2>I am coming home to vote</h2> Bimal Subedi, Qatar  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_8c0597047c2aa87a1dc8d3c062f46071107c16a3d8331df12627db9b14ce2756.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20260223120244_8c0597047c2aa87a1dc8d3c062f46071107c16a3d8331df12627db9b14ce2756" data-rendition-name="original" width="924" height="2000" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  The political ups and downs in Nepal brought me to Qatar 21 years ago, but even from the diaspora, I have continued my engagement with the NC in various capacities. The democratic change of 1990, led by the NC opened Nepal to the world. &nbsp; From a country that did not even allow ordinary people to have passports, the government took steps to provide unemployed youth access to overseas jobs and the international market. This outmigration intensified after the Maoist conflict, and now there is a significant population overseas. Foreign employment has helped us send money back home, which has improved our living standards and helped us come out of poverty. Foreign employment can be beneficial if we make good use of it to maximise our skills and capabilities. I have been able to establish myself as a senior accountant in an international travel company and have also improved my family’s living standards. In the past two decades, I have come home 70 times, in fact, it is easier for me to travel to Kathmandu from Qatar than for someone from Dolpo.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120244_1f89301a33ee6ed0858d7047aeb7ad4c73289c7be58a451c6d1c98d6930d2bc2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20260223120244_1f89301a33ee6ed0858d7047aeb7ad4c73289c7be58a451c6d1c98d6930d2bc2" data-rendition-name="original" width="924" height="2000" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  The recent GenZ movement was a fight for equal access to education and basic services. Someone in Dolpo should have access to the same opportunities as someone in Kathmandu. But inequality transcends borders. Someone working in the same five star hotel overseas versus in Nepal sees a large salary difference. Only the one abroad can make meaningful savings. How do we create a labour market in Nepal that provides quality jobs so people can afford a decent living? The narrative being painted, especially on social media, that only the new is good is misleading. We have long advocated for change that touches the grassroots level and provides equal access to opportunities and services. The latest changes within NC leadership and the manifesto have made it evident that reform is coming, and we are coming home to show our support. Some are returning just to vote, while others have arranged their vacations during election time. This time I am coming home with the hope that the new government will ensure everyone has equal access to healthcare and education. That Nepali diaspora overseas will be provided a platform to invest in Nepal and help create world class jobs.&nbsp; I am coming to vote for a Nepal that we can all be proud of. <h2>Possibility of real change&nbsp;</h2> Sachin Thakur, Malaysia  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260223120248_40a23a8aa46cc22999de1bfafe6e77a30c88253ea280473c7213d40d35d3acd5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20260223120248_40a23a8aa46cc22999de1bfafe6e77a30c88253ea280473c7213d40d35d3acd5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1778" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Homecoming at election time NT"> </figure>  I am coming home for the first time after working 40 months in Malaysia. I came to vote for Balen. I went overseas looking for jobs, just like my father who had spent five years in Qatar as a construction worker and who returned prematurely from the UAE after a failed migration experience.&nbsp; Malaysia is filled with Balen supporters. We have a company canteen where ten of us met constantly to discuss politics. We talked about corruption and the need for better jobs back home. The non-RSP supporters are in the minority at our workplace and perhaps across Malaysia. I came home to vote. I was lucky to be able to time my vacation that way. I look forward to spending time with family but also have plans to get together with the boys to campaign for RSP.&nbsp; For those of us who are overseas, the expectation is that the government will negotiate better terms of employment including higher pay. And that we can eventually come home. I want to resume my business making gold jewelery.&nbsp; What Nepal needs is leaders who focus on improving the basics: education and health, and everything else would work out on its own. We are betting on Balen because he has made a difference in Kathmandu as mayor, and now it is time to think about the whole country. It is not guaranteed how much he will be able to accomplish, but there is an actual possibility for real change this time and that is what matters.&nbsp;

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